thelwig14

I am done. Loved the pilot but I guess I found Eliot to be so fascinating out of the gate that I wanted a simplified show centered around him.

I want Ray Donovan to fix things and I don't care about this family.

I want Dexter to dispose of bad guys.

I wanted Eliot to be an unconventional superhero taking out bad guys while battling his own personal demons. I loved him looking out for his shrink, etc.

flashburn

It's funny how people whine about when a show isn't so straightforward that you can't half-watch it and get everything possible out of it at the same time.

I for one am glad that there are at least some shows that aren't devoted to a distracted audience.

This episode was extremely easy to follow. Everything from Elliot's perspective from the point he was in the hotel room withdrawing was a dream, and it was fairly easy to interpret what he was experiencing in it.

I also find it funny how all it takes is one episode they dislike to drop a show, it's only the 4th fucking episode! I will say it's ballsy of them to drop an episode like this so early on, and I think in the long run it's going to be looked at as a daring, risky, and artistically impressive move, instead of some sort of early downhill trend. At least, I hope that's the case.

dex14

I don't know... I think this is one of, if not the most, unique things currently on basic cable.

RichC2

It was a straight forward episode, some people just try to decipher the meaning in every scene, which can get confusing in hallucination heavy episodes like this one.

I liked the first two episodes better, the third episode was straight forward but I didn't like the direction the story was going, the fourth episode just went a different direction entirely but covered something that's pretty important for the character. The end of the episode suggests we'll be back to normal next week.

Geofferson

Agreed. Even the opening credits alone are done in such a unique way that I'm usually hooked from the opening moments of each episode.

PhantomStranger

It's a very intricately laid-out show but the fourth episode did leave me a little bored at times. I've never liked storytelling that relies on a drugged-up narrator since the writer can pick-and-choose what is true for the punchline. I think it was probably a little too early in the series to attempt an ambitious episode like this fourth one. We don't know these characters well enough to understand everything that is happening.

I assume later reveals will make far more sense of the events that happened during his hallucinations.

Thrush

I didn't realize it was all a fever dream till after the fact, but I didnt have trouble following what was going on either.

I thought the episode was well done and I appreciated the minimizing of Slater's role. Hopefully that continues.

Jadzia

So can the people who thought this episode was easy to follow please recap what exactly happened?
I know he was on drugs most of the episode, but what happened with his childhood friend, the blond girl? I feel I missed a lot because I was so pulled out of the story because nothing was real.

Honestly I would like this show a lot better if he wasn't on drugs. Couldn't he just be socially awkward, brilliant, odd, and depressed? Does he have to be a junkie too?

I think I just have a low patience for drug abuser storylines.

VHS?

Same here. Not confused and thought it was a great episode.
I liked how they tried to make it seem at one point Slater isn't and then later on he is.
I feel as though the drug part was needed. It's not saying he's some drugged out kid who happens to work as a cyber security specialist, but that the drugs are what got him to where he is and how he thinks. It is the show. Slater is there because of the psychosis due to the drugs and mental anguish growing up.

MikahC

I agree. I was a big advocate for the show after seeing the pilot, but I've liked each episodes less than the previous and at this point, it's losing me. I had no interest in watching someone's drug induced hallucinations.

Reasonable. I'd change your comment from, "I wanted," to, "I thought I was getting." (Based on the pilot.)

mphtrilogy

I had no clue what was going on in that ep

johnnysd

Guess no one is watching anymore. Really liked last night's episode. Slater interacted directly with the hackers quite a bit towards the end. First show I have ever seen that has a reasonable and accurate portrayal of hackers and computers.

Pointyskull

I'm still in - and liking it!

I can forgive the lazy conveniences at Steel Mountain to push the story along, because I really like Elliott and his awkward social behaviors.

stopgap

Still watching and agree on your last thought whole-heartedly.

RichC2

The name alone made me , oh Iron Mountain how far you've made it.

flashburn

Episode 5 was just about perfect. Really good stuff. I think it's impressive how much character and plot development they've done so far with only 5 episodes.

I need to start paying attention the the names of the arcade games, I knew one was "Mallard Murder" but I noticed another game is called "Dark Seoul", .

OldBoy

so much for the "Fight Club" scenario...

good ep.

flashburn

Do you mean about Christian Slater's character? Why?

dex14

Right. Have you seen Fight Club? Tyler Durden gives the entire "rules" speech to a room full of people. Jury is still out there. I think Christian Slater's character isn't real.

RichC2

Yeah, it still comes off like the Slater persona is his "out" from the banality of daily life.

Flave

Christian Slater's character is real -- he's just Elliot's alter persona. Notice that Slater and Elliot only interact with the group individually, they never both interact with the group at the same time. I think Elliot has a dissociative identity disorder (multiple personalities) probably brought on from his drug abuse.

dex14

Yes, that is what I mean.

OldBoy

I actually wish Fight Club was never mentioned. Now, all I focus on is Slater to see if it is plausible and I guess it is, but that last ep. threw me...

flashburn

I didn't really see anything specific that made me think he still isn't real. Any time he was talking to his F Society cohorts, Elliot was standing to the side not saying a word.

Basically what Flave said. So I guess he is more "real" than completely nonexistent, but still no more real than Tyler Durden in Fight Club.

flashburn

Yeah, and actually I thought they were even more obvious about this in episode 5.